It Came Like a Bolt from the Blue
by PaolaAdara
Summary: He draws her in like nothing else does, but it isn't until later that she realizes why she's just so willing to wait.


Title: It Came Like a Bolt from the Blue (1/1)

Author: Paola Adara

Disclaimer: _It Came Like a Bolt from the Blue_ is based on characters and situations that belong to Sotsu Agency, Bandai Studios, and TV Asashi (and other production affiliates that have the right of ownership). No money is being made, and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

Considerations: Similarities to other stories/events/passages are purely coincidental unless otherwise cited.

_**It Came Like a Bolt from the Blue**_

"It's all right to cry. You should cry. While we're still able to…" she trailed off, holding a crying Kira in her arms. She could feel every sob that wracked his body, every gasp for air like he would run out at any moment, and every shake of his shoulders that accompanied the sorrow that ate at him from the inside.

It hurt her to see him breaking down like this…like all his hopes and dreams had been crushed by forces he couldn't understand. She wanted to do something, but there wasn't anything else she could do. Right now, all she could offer him were words of comfort and her presence.

A gentle touch.

A soothing word.

So she laid his head on her lap, a gesture of compassion, she hoped, as Kira released pent-up emotions he'd harbored over his supposed failure of protecting that girl — Flay, was it? Emotions that threatened to overwhelm him...to consume him if he kept them hidden. She stroke his hair, wishing that that was enough…that her mere presence was enough to allow the lost boy silence for his tears, comfort for his soul, and solace for his breaking person.

Kira… There was just something in him that drew her in… Something she felt for the rueful Coordinator that made her want to console him…probably even heal him if it were possible. She'd tried giving it a name on more than one occasion, only to find out later on that her lexis didn't run as long as the gamut of her emotions. It was more than a crush — on that she was sure — but just a few sentiments short of love.

Lacus distractedly worried her bottom lip. Perhaps it was the poignant aura surrounding him…a combination of a strong sense of conviction and melancholy. He's just so…exquisitely wounded that all she wanted to do was shield him from all the misery of the war, even when she knew she couldn't fight his battles for him…even when she knew that, in the end, she could only watch from the sidelines while he fought his monsters.

Just knowing that sent a sliver of pain through her heart.

She could still remember the first time they met, seemingly like a memory of yesterday. She'd easily noticed the lingering uncertainty in his eyes, but she hadn't known him then, and it hadn't been her place to intrude upon his pain. He'd been so kind to her back then, too, maybe because they shared the same race — they were both Coordinators in a ship inhabited by Naturals. Then again, she never actually believed that. For as long as she could remember, she never was one to draw lines between both races. The crew might have had thought that that was the reason behind Kira's kindness to her, but she knew otherwise…she _believed_ otherwise.

Kira was considerate to her, just like he was to everyone else. There'd been no special treatment, no misplaced pity, and absolutely no ulterior motives.

When he delivered her back to Athrun despite orders to stay put, she perceived something in him that she couldn't shake off. Perhaps it had been a thin ray of hope for humanity from the other side of where she belonged. Or it could have been as simple as admiration. But for what? For rescuing her? For returning her unharmed to her fiancé? For standing his ground to stay on the side he was on despite Athrun's persuasion to switch sides?

She inwardly sighed. No, it hadn't been admiration, and definitely not a hope for humanity because she saw all that, too, in Athrun and in everyone else fighting for what they desperately believed in, no matter how tainted or how chivalrous or how universal their beliefs were.

If it weren't some humanitarian hope or admiration, then what? Lacus couldn't pinpoint what it was at that exact moment, and maybe she wouldn't ever be able to.

At least not when she knew so little about him.

Lacus noticed how Kira's sobs were dwindling, leaving ragged, uneven breaths as remnants of the consequence of his unfair situation. She wasn't cognizant of how deep Kira and Flay's relationship went, but by how Kira had broken down in front of her, Lacus knew he loved Flay like how he knew he should — with all his heart, and, unconsciously, with all the urgency of a person thrust into the heat of battle without ever having the opportunity to choose if he really wanted to be out there.

With a sudden slight hesitation she didn't know the origin of, Lacus brought her fingers to his face in a gentle caress, brushing away the vestiges of his warm tears. His shoulders heaved every now and then, almost a sign of a restless sleep brought about by his agonized weeping.

She let her hand travel to those shoulders, feeling the irregular movement as he breathed.

Or perhaps they were heaving because they were carrying the weight of a thousand hopes he hadn't asked to be responsible of…heaving because they were slaving under the vicissitude of a ruthless war he hadn't asked to be a part of. She had the gift to understand people, to read into their actions, but she hadn't any luck comprehending Kira. Not his sorrows, not his anger, not his courage…and never his determination.

She'd once thought that he fought with all that he had because he felt the need to protect those he loved, but then, they _all _fought for those they loved…families, friends, even ideals. She wasn't rejecting the possibility that that might be his real reason for piloting a mobile suit and immersing himself in the throes of battle, but somewhere in the recesses of her mind — her heart — there was a tugging feeling whispering to her that it went beyond that…that he was fighting for something else.

Lacus' gaze wandered around the room, her hand absent-mindedly stroking the brunette's unruly locks. Then her baby blues locked on the photo frame that held a picture of Kira and Cagalli as newborns and a woman Lacus identified as their mother. For a few, calm heartbeats, she stared at the picture, and just then, it clicked.

Perhaps, Kira wasn't only fighting to safeguard the people attached to his heart. Maybe…just maybe, Kira was wielding the power he was given…to learn who he was…his past, his family.

…His reason for existence.

Lacus brought her gaze back to Kira's face, her eyes softening at the sight of him sleeping serenely on her lap. Kira…was fighting to understand the truth that encompassed his entire being…the truth that had been hidden from him for as long as he existed.

She breathed in a drag of air as she weighed the likeliness of her conclusion. It wasn't too farfetched an idea…but then again, that was just her insight on things. For all she knew, she could just be imprinting points where she shouldn't be. For now…all she could do was guess…because she hadn't the courage to wake Kira up and ask him his reasons. He was exhausted, physically, mentally, and emotionally. His limits had been drawn out too thin, and she couldn't find the heart to deprive him of the rest his body and mind had been long ago screaming for.

So she decided she'd wait. She'd wait for him to be ready to face the world again…wait for him to open those lilac orbs that spoke volumes. Then, perhaps, she'd try to gather enough mettle to ask him such personal questions.

But until then, she'd just hold him. Until he opened his eyes, she'd settle on waiting. She had a long stretch of patience, and Kira — she wiped the lone tear that took enough time to escape his closed eyelids — Kira might just be worth the wait.

-The End

Reference/s:

Mobile Suit: Gundam SEED PHASE 46: A Place for the Soul – the story is an insert insight when Lacus comforts Kira after the revelation of his identity and Flay's abduction.

A/N:

I've always liked Lacus' character. It's so charming in its simplicity, don't you think?

C'mon, peeps, show me some love and drop a review! Don't be cheap now, c'mon! I accept constructive criticisms, comments, flames, and lemon drops. _Wink._


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